Songs and Poetry
by The Genius Mage
Summary: There were many things different between them, but you only need one simple reason, one word, for a relationship to work. JoshuaxRhyme.
1. Help

_**I own none of the quotes at the top of my chapters. Nor do I own TWEWY.**_

~***~

**Songs and Poetry**

Help

"_We can do no great things, only small things with great love."_

~***~

Rhyme followed Beat around the newly opened mall, (they had closed for renovations), trailing along behind him while he stared at all the clothes.

"Bwaa?! Who the hell would wear this?" He demanded, holding up a white, long sleeved shirt. "This looks like sumthin' Prissy Boy would wear."

She replied patiently, "Still, Beat, even if it's not something in your style, someone else would find it matches them perfectly."

He tossed it back on the rack, scrounging around some more. They were at a clearance sale, since their family wasn't exactly the richest around, but they had the cash for this, at least.

Rhyme looked around at the rabid teenagers going at each other's throats for the fifty percent off fashions and smiled to herself, shaking her head. Beat held up a T-shirt that was about Rhyme's size, studying the black fabric with the skeletal dragon design that traced the edges of the shirt.

"Yo, you like this?"

Rhyme studied the tag, shaking her head again. "It's too much for one shirt Beat, even on sell."

Beat studied the tag, scowling. "You can git it, if ya want."

Rhyme poked the hole in Beat's jeans, a rather large rip on his knee that almost severed the entire legging. "You need new jeans first, Beat. Then we'll see."

He turned around, grumbling to himself about how much he hated clothes shopping, tapping his foot impatiently, not at his sister, but at the task itself.

Rhyme turned her head, looking at a section on boy's jeans that looked like something her brother would wear. "I'll look over there, Beat."

His only response was a grunted, "Watch yerself, lots of creeps out here."

He had no idea how right he was.

She wandered over, checking the jeans, pushing aside rows and rows of the dark blue denim. She smiled, satisfied, when she found a pair that matched Beat's style and size. Not to mention it was a decent price, no one can do shopping like girls can.

Albeit, yes, Rhyme was a tomboy, but girls have a natural ability to shop, as everyone knows.

She turned around, pants over her arm, when she walked straight into someone.

"Oh, I'm sorry." She apologized, scrambling to her feet. She quickly grabbed the dark grey shirt and white pants off the ground, handing them to their owner, before grabbing her own pants.

"Oh, that's quite all right."

Rhyme looked up, startled, into a pair of mauve eyes. Only one person had eyes that seemed almost glassy, their surface reflecting the light.

Or only one person had purple eyes, for that matter.

She smiled. "Joshua, hello. She straightened up, thinking about the last time she had even heard from him.

"Is Shiki somewhere around here?" As far as Rhyme knew, Shiki had been making an effort to make Joshua feel more welcome in their friend circle. The duo had been spending a lot of time together, but that was only when she last heard of it.

"I should hope not." He replied, his lips twisting into his lazy smile. He flicked his hair from his face. "Can I not do some shopping without having to be out with someone? Even Composers get tired of wearing the same clothes, you know."

Rhyme actually thought he could probably change his clothes at will, being Composer and all with almost limitless power, but maybe he simply wanted to buy some. Wasn't really her business. Instead, she just smiled serenely, holding her hands in front of her and bowing slightly.

"It was nice seeing you again, Josh, but I have to go find Beat now." Rhyme stood on tiptoe, scanning the crowds, her eyes roving every which way, searching for her brother's familiar figure in the mass of people scrounging through the clearance items.

"I believe he is over that way." Joshua said behind her, pointing to the hat section. He was right, there was her brother, trying on a hat, studying the white flames that ran across the black cloth.

She smiled again. "Thank you. Do you need help finding anything?" That was added only as an afterthought, since she was certain the Composer would only say-

"As a matter of fact, I would appreciate some help on an issue." He smirked, perhaps noticing her surprised look, removing his phone from his pocket and studying the clock. "I have to go rather sooner than I would like, and may have some _minor_ trouble finding a certain article of clothing…" He trailed off, his eyes scanning the racks.

"I would be happy to help. What are you looking for?"

"Winter is coming, is it not? I must insist that you find a jacket that fits my rather refined tastes, for whenever I'm in the RG I'd rather not be overly conspicuous by being the only kid in the colder months not wearing some form of arctic gear."

Rhyme studied his clothing carefully, noticing how he seemed to favor light colors and clothes with little to no designs or pictures, and nodded, smiling again.

"I'll get right to that, Beat shouldn't be going anywhere."

Joshua nodded, closing his phone. "I appreciate your help on the matter, I'm going to find something myself."

Rhyme traveled down the aisle, searching the men's winter wear department. She find her mind wandering as she tried to find something with light colors and no pictures, which would match the Composer's "refined" tastes.

She had been working rather hard lately, but to no avail. She couldn't generate what she wanted to do with her life. She felt like a patch of her soul was missing, the bright colors that had once presented themselves had gone.

Her dreams…

However, she was often told those were her _old_ dreams, she could make new ones.

She hoped…

Suddenly, she pulled out a very light tan jacket, so light tan it was almost white, the fabric was thick and sturdy enough to offer warmth, but not too thick as to go against the thin clothing Joshua favored. Perfect, or at least Rhyme thought so.

She headed back to the men's pants section where she had left him, and wasn't surprised to see he was already there, a bag slung over one shoulder full of his personal clothing, and another bag, separate from the others, in his hands.

Rhyme offered him the jacket, and she was surprised to see she felt nervous while his eyes trailed over the clothing. He finally lifted his oddly piercing gaze, and then he smiled, lifting the corners of his mouth.

"This, dear Rhyme, is exactly what I would have chosen. I simply must compliment you on your abilities." He handed her the smaller bag, his eyes shining with his amusement. Then again, he always looked amused, like he knew a rather nasty secret about everyone that they didn't.

She opened it, perplexed; removing the T-shirt Beat had shown her earlier, with the skeletal dragon. She smiled helplessly, looking up, her eyes shining. She had actually adored that shirt, but she would never buy it, especially with money so tight. Had he seen her looking at it…? Didn't matter, she decided, because he had actually been nice enough to get it for her.

"Thank you…but you didn't have to." Rhyme said, too stunned to say much else.

"Oh, but I did. Besides, like I said, _I_ need to thank _you._ Let's see here…" He tapped his chin thoughtfully, and then smiled, doing that giggle he seemed fond of that Rhyme knew made Neku want to claw his ears off.

"I really appreciate you, your helpful giving ways, and how your generous heart, your unselfishness displays. I thank you for your kindness, I will not soon forget, you're one of the nicest people I have ever met." He recited the poem smoothly, his tone amused, and Rhyme found herself blushing.

"Did you write that?" She asked. He giggled again.

"Do you not like poetry? For one that nicknames herself Rhyme…"

"I love them." She smiled, clasping her hands. "Songs, poems…Maybe that was my dream, huh?"

"Perhaps, dear. As for the poem, I wish I could take credit for that, but no. I could, of course, write something easily level with that elegy, but I have things to do. See you soon, Rhyme."

"Yeah, come by whenever you want, okay?" She smiled again, and he looked at her curiously.

"Would you still say that even after hearing what Shiki has to say about why I stopped hanging out with her?"

"Of course. We all deserve second chances, whatever you did." She promised.

He looked at her strangely, like she was an interesting subject. "Didn't I use my second chance when I shot Neku?"

"Well…" Rhyme hesitated, and then shook her head. He smirked, but the gesture looked softer than normal.

He knelt down slightly, getting to her eye level, his purple eyes staring into her own.

"See you soon then, Rhyme." His lips very lightly brushed her cheek, and she blushed harder.

"Yo, Rhyme!"

Rhyme whirled around, looking behind her at Beat, who came to a halt, staring at her startled expression.

"What's up with yo face, Rhyme? You all freaked out lookin'."

She turned back around, but Joshua was gone. "Er, nothing. Here." She handed him his pants, accepting the pair he had found for her.

"That's perfect, y'know?" He declared, studying his own pants.

As Beat stood in line to pay for the clothes, Rhyme standing close by her brother, he noticed the bag she had.

"Where did ya get t'at, Rhyme?"

She was about to tell him when she heard, more like _felt_, Joshua's voice in her ear.

"_You'd be better off not telling him, I would not like to have him after me."_

"Um…" Rhyme hated lying. "Shiki was here, just a moment ago, and she actually just brought this for me. She had to go, though, and she said to tell you hi."

Beat raised his eyebrows, studying Rhyme's guilty expression, but luckily it was his turn in line. Rhyme quickly checked the receipt for her shirt, showed it to the clerk, then she and Beat left the mall.

While they walked, Rhyme felt something pass her by. It felt like the wind or something, but softer, like feathers almost. She couldn't help but close her eyes as it passed, but when she looked again nothing was there.

~***~  
_**Okay, just in case you were wondering, I can't help but connect all of my stories together when I write. To understand what Joshua was talking about with Shiki, you'd have to read my other stories.**_

_**Not important anymore, really.**_

_**Okay, now I'm going to bother a line from Tsukikitty.**_

**Reviews=Hellz to the yes please!**


	2. Wish

**Songs and Poetry**

Wish

"_My wish isn't to mean everything to everyone but something to someone."_

_~***~_

Rhyme bent down, smiling as the dog snuffled the kibble from her hand. She straightened up, reaching into the bag for yet another round of food for the hungry puppies.

She was working part time at the animal shelter, which she usually did on Fridays after school, because she had an intense love for animals, (not to mention other things), and enjoyed assisting the creatures as they tried to find homes with the folks of Shibuya.

Someone named Sota had come in at one point, asking if he could get a small dog for his girlfriend. It took some doing, but Rhyme managed to find a small, cute dog that wouldn't grow much bigger. It was little more than a fluff ball, but he had said it was perfect for his "Nao-Nao."

Afterwards, Rhyme headed home, knowing Beat would panic if she was even a little late. One of the older employees at the shelter had given her an ice cream for her work, and even though she insisted it wasn't necessary, he insisted _yes, it was._ She had to admit, it was a very good vanilla ice cream cone, and she licked it as she set off down the street.

Rhyme suddenly noticed a small crowd of kids around a silvery device that shot water into the air. The fountain was new, just recently added to a small park not far from Hachiko. She noticed kids were flipping in small, flat gold discs that were emblazoned with a "W", giggling and laughing to jokes only they knew.

She checked her phone and decided she had enough time to investigate. She headed over to the man in the tan business suit, he had a smirk she instantly disliked, but forced herself to ask amiably what he was handing out to everyone. He ran a hand through his brown hair, and then smirked wider.

"These?" He asked, holding up his hand which had coins trapped between each finger. "They're wishing tokens, for the new fountain I installed." He handed her one, and Rhyme studied the simple but pretty coin, the "W" only visible on one side. "Make a wish, kid." After that he turned around and started handing more out.

Rhyme studied the crowd, and then shook her head. She'd come back later, wishing needed to be done in…a quieter environment, or so she liked to think.

She pocketed the coin and headed back down the road, searching for the right sign that would point her to home. A car roared loudly, screeching as it turned the corner, and she flattened herself to the wall of a building, although the car wasn't anywhere near her. Rhyme paused a moment, her hand grasping her necklace, heart thundering, and then she forced herself to relax.

_Its okay, Rhyme. It's not going to get you._

She stuck the key in the door of her home, turning the item and entering. She was met with the intense smell of burning food.

Rhyme rushed into the kitchen to see Beat had fallen asleep, feet up on the table, while a pot over boiled with ramen noodles. The noodles were a soft, sticky mess, and the water was almost all gone. Smiling, she cleaned out the pot in the sink and scraped out the burnt noodles before going into the living room and draping a blanket over her brother, who was snoring faintly. Afterwards, she grabbed an apple and headed up to her room.

~***~

It was around eleven o'clock, almost midnight she guessed, and Rhyme couldn't go to sleep.

She didn't like leaving things unfinished, and she felt like she was forgetting something. It was only when she stuck her hand in her pocket to place her phone on the table that she felt her fingers brush against the gold coin. Rhyme looked guiltily at the clock, wondering if she would be all right heading out alone. Beat would totally freak if he woke up and did one of his usual visits to her room, (she found it cute he worried so much), and didn't see her there in bed.

Still…she could take care of herself. She hoped. And she wouldn't be long, anyway.

Rhyme quietly stepped down the stairs and out the door, heading quickly down the street, dodging the few people still out on the sidewalk at this time of night. She had forgotten about the fountain due to her spending the rest of the day helping Beat out with some homework, (algebra killed his brain, he claimed). Then she had gone to the grocery store with Beat to buy food, she helped her mom make dinner, and _then_ she had tried to stop her dad from arguing with her brother.

Pretty much the whole day right there. And some of the night. Small wonder it had escaped her.

The sound of falling water reached Rhyme's ears, and she was relieved to see no one else was around. As she approached the fountain, she just faintly saw some stars dancing in its depths. The moon turned the water into silver, and the floor of the fountain was covered in gold coins.

"So many wishes…" She murmured. "I hope they all come true."

She removed the coin from her pocket, studying it, and then clasped it tightly in her fist, holding it to her chest and closing her eyes.

She missed her own dreams, after losing the Game they had never come back. What had she wanted to do? Was that her wish? She wished for her old dreams back? Or…did she want new ones?

So many choices and Rhyme had just barely scratched the surface.

_You're being selfish, Rhyme. What about other people? You may not have a dream but some people don't have _anything.

She decided to wish for those people, for those people she didn't know to get a dream, and to have a family and a home. Those less fortunate than her, in the long run. She smiled softly, opened her eyes, and prepared to drop the coin. Suddenly, in the water she saw a glint of violet.

"So naïve."

Rhyme jumped, startled, dropping the coin. It rebounded off the rim of the fountain, clattering to the ground and rolling to a stop near someone's shoe. He stooped down, slowly, fixing her with his purple stare, and picked up the wishing token. He straightened up, his gaze never leaving her face, and handed it back to her. She took it shakily.

"J-Joshua…please don't freak me out like that." She teased, leaning against the fountain. He smirked, hand returning to his pocket. Rhyme turned her attention to the features of the fountain, if just to avoid his scrutinizing stare, studying it closely. It depicted Hachiko, standing up this time, posed like he was looking directly at something to the left and slightly above him. Around him two spouts of water rose, met in the middle, and fell down directly behind and in front of him, a thin trail of silver starlight falling into the golden abyss below…

"What did you mean?" She asked unexpectedly.

"Hmm?" He hummed, his gaze moving from her to the stars.

"How am I naïve?"

He said nothing for a moment, his free hand moving up to brush his hair from his eyes. Joshua then blinked, smiled, and replied,

"Wishing for others to find their way. They have to do it themselves; they don't _deserve_ your good will." For a moment, Rhyme caught a glimpse of something…dark in his features, his eyes hardening like he was considering Shibuya to be some sort of unpleasant object he had been forced to deal with. Then he relaxed, his eyes turning back to her, waiting for her response.

"How did-"Rhyme sighed. "Oh. You heard my wish. It'll never come true now. I _want_ to help others, Joshua."

"It will come true; someone else hearing it will not affect its course. In fact, if more people know, more may help you get what you desire." He replied, ignoring her last statement.

"Do you think so?" She asked quietly.

Joshua nodded, and Rhyme turned the token over in her hand. She smiled then, leaning over and dropping it into the water, closing her eyes. After a moment she heard him walk closer and stand directly beside her. When she opened her eyes again, he had a token in his hand, smiling at her.

"I think I'll make a wish too." Joshua said, flipping the coin and catching it.

"What about?" She asked softly.

"I can't tell you that." He smirked at her, lavender eyes shining even in the semidarkness.

"Why not?" She pouted. "You just said-"

"I know what I said. But I don't want to tell you. Good night, Rhyme." He flipped the coin, eyes closed, and she watched it land in the water. The instant the ripples started across its surface, his reflection vanished, and Rhyme was standing alone.

She looked around, finding no trace of him, and bent down to touch the nameplate of the fountain, which proudly proclaimed in golden letters on a silver plaque:

**Hachiko's Wish**

Rhyme turned around, smiling, holding her arms close to herself. "Good night, Joshua."

She didn't know he was just in the UG, standing beside her, (he told himself it was just to make sure she got home safely, since night in the city wasn't exactly safe), and walking slowly close to her.

As he walked, Joshua found some words from a quote he had heard come to his mind. He smiled, saying them to himself, or maybe to her?

"I'm not supposed to love you…I'm not supposed to care. I'm not supposed to live my life wishing you were there. I'm not supposed to wonder where you are or what you do…I'm sorry, I can't help myself…"

They had reached her house, and he reached over to gently brush his fingers across her cheek. She blinked, like she had felt it, her own hand touching her face. Then she just smiled serenely, and went inside.

He stood there for a moment, and then finished his rhyme.

"I'm in love with you."

~***~

_**I loved this whole chapter. For real. Please, review!**_


	3. Hope

**Songs and Poetry**

Hope

"…_Once you find laughter, no matter how painful your situation might be, you can survive it."_

~***~

He was neglecting his Composer duties.

By all means he _should _be back at the Shibuya River.

He wasn't.

Didn't care.

What were they going to do about it anyway?

There weren't any Games going on at the moment, so he had all of this free time on his hands that _simply_ couldn't go to waste. The UG wouldn't blow up if he was gone for a few hours. Besides, lately his mind had been elsewhere, drifting off to what he considered forbidden territory.

However, he was never one to deny himself. If there was some form of entertainment that kept him happy, or at least interested, he would find some way to get it. Right now, he wanted to see her, hear the sweet music of her pure thoughts, and make sure she was _safe._

Of course, he told himself it was just because he couldn't bare the idea of Neku losing a friend, or maybe because she simply lost her entry fee already. Taking another would be cruel, would it not?

Lies that echoed in his ears as if his heart still beat…

He closed his eyes, trying to locate her. As Composer, his scanning drifted farther than any other, and he was used to the flow of her mind. He located her heading down the street, away from her house, her thoughts directed elsewhere.

It didn't take him long to reach her, and he followed her in the UG, comforted in the knowledge that she had no Noise floating around her, and thus her thoughts must be in order.

Rhyme was smiling, eyes shining, watching the people mingle around her. Joshua eavesdropped on her thoughts as he walked.

_I'm glad Beat is beginning to lessen up, though his concern is touching. _

Joshua smiled at the pureness of that statement; the way it sounded in her mind was soft and gentle.

_I hope he didn't hold me back too long though, what if he already started the operation?_

He frowned. Operation? Who's? His question was soon quickly answered as Rhyme skipped around the corner, the local children's hospital coming into sight. She went inside the doors, nodding politely to the nurse, her thoughts still riveted on the subject of her visit, which she annoyingly didn't bring up directly.

The moment she pushed open the doors, Joshua still following, (and secretly glad there wasn't a decal on the hospital), little kids all ran into Rhyme's arms.

"RHYME!" They shouted, dancing around her and jumping up and down. Several pulled themselves onto Rhyme's back, and she stumbled before falling onto her stomach. She laughed as the little kids, ages two to six, tugged at her hair and clothes.

"You came, you came!" One kid shouted, apparently unaware of how loud he was compared to the others. The sight of Rhyme laughing and smiling with the poor kids made a helpless smile cross the Composer's face.

_This is charming. _

"Of course I came." She chirped, sitting up in a cross-legged position and taking the youngest in her lap. She rocked him gently in her arms, looking up and greeting each kid before turning to one boy who hadn't run forward, but was standing near her. He looked like seven, Joshua guessed, and he had dark brown hair and white clothes on. On his pale face rested a pair of sunglasses.

Rhyme stood up, gently placing down the toddler, and walked over to the sunglasses kid. A curious Joshua followed. She knelt down, taking the kid's shoulder and smiling.

"Isn't the operation today, Daichi?" She said.

The kid smiled, looking nervous. "Y-yeah. Do you think it'll work, Rhyme?"

She hugged him close, whispering in his ear, and Joshua had to step close to hear.

"I _know_ it will. You have to believe. Hope is the essence of courage, be brave for the others here, and inspire them."

"I-I'll try my best. I thought you wouldn't come." He pouted. The tremor of fear in his voice was audible.

"I just got held back, but I never go against a promise." She replied, releasing him. Joshua stared, fingers forming an arch, as he studied the scene in front of him.

_How can you say that? You have no hard proof. Placing false hope in the child's heart would only make disappointment all the more painful._

A doctor came in, a soft smile on his old features.

"Daichi, it's time."

Rhyme hugged him again, holding his hand. "It'll be okay."

He smiled, and then walked forward, his small hand slipping from hers. Rhyme knelt there, waving and smiling, until Daichi and the doctor vanished behind the door.

Afterwards, she straightened up, and for just a moment Joshua caught a terrible pain in her blue eyes, filled with fear and desperate hope, and then it was gone. She clapped her hands together, attracting the attention of the kids in the room that had gone deathly quiet since the departure of one of their own.

"Okay, what about a story?"

Cheers erupted at this, and while Rhyme approached a cart full of books, Joshua scanned her mind. He was stunned; the usual soft melody was now rather depressing.

_Oh please let it be okay. He's too young to go blind; he has his whole life ahead of him! I'd switch places, if only I could!_

"You worry about everyone." Joshua murmured, watching her turn around as a young girl spoke up.

"Can we have a new story?" Someone asked.

Rhyme crossed her arms, thinking. "Hmm, okay. I've got one."

She sat down on the brown leather furniture, closing her eyes as the kids sat around her.

"There was once a boy named Joshua."

He blinked, staring hard at her, double checking his vibe to make sure he wasn't visible on their realm.

"He had an elegant way of speaking." Rhyme adopted a haughty tone, obviously meant to mimic his own. She succeeded in earning several giggles from her audience. "And he liked to use word play, to better confuse his enemies."

"What enemies?" Asked one girl.

"Oh, he used to see the world as his enemy, Mai. The whole of Shibuya was his foe."

"Why?" Asked another kid.

"He didn't trust people, for reasons that even he had forgotten. He saw them as tools, things to be used, all equal in his eyes."

"Sounds like a jerk." Sniffed one kid. Rhyme smiled.

"He was, at first."

Joshua scowled.

"Then, he earned the trust of someone, and he began trusting that someone in return. Let's just say he gave that someone a new chance at life."

"Was he a doctor? A miracale worker?"

"_Miracle _worker, Tatsu. And yes, I guess you could say that. That person he trusted had friends too, after a difficult journey himself. Soon that someone's friends began to talk to Joshua, and he talked to them. A girl wished she could get Joshua to completely open up, so she could talk to him and get to know him. Because she knew that he had an interesting story that he had to tell someone, he needed a friend who he could tell everything to, he needed someone to understand." That adopted haughty tone again. "But of course he needed no help, he was _Joshua_."

"Is there a moral? I love morals!" said Mai.

Rhyme smiled. "There is, I'm not done yet. Joshua decided to finally talk to the girl, and afterwards he found he felt better. The two-"

"Got married and lived happily ever after?" spoke up one boy.

Rhyme blushed, and Joshua giggled a little at her expression.

"W-well no. I mean, err-"

"Kids? Time for lunch." A nurse said, coming in. The kids all rushed out, some coughing on the way, and the nurse stepped aside to let them pass. "Are you going to stay for lunch, Rhyme?" She asked.

Rhyme stood up, smiling and shaking her head. "No, sorry. I'll go somewhere else to eat, but I'll hang around for a little while longer afterwards."

"Okay, dear. Thanks for coming; they look forward to your visits."

"It's the least I can do, ma'am." Rhyme responded politely.

"You're an angel." The nurse cooed, closing the door.

Joshua looked around, judged the room empty, and then glared at the security camera. He could hardly materialize with it there. He followed Rhyme outside, and then appeared a little ahead of her, in an alley. While she walked by, oblivious, he said,

"Want to get to know me better, hmm?"

She froze, then turned around, smiling gently at him. Joshua smirked back.

"Oh, hi, Josh. I had a feeling you were there."

"Of course you did." He murmured, stepping close beside her. She smiled up at him.

"I meant every word I said, you know."

"Did you really?" He flicked a strand of his ashen hair from his face. "I see. That's so utterly adorable, using me as the subject of your morale stories."

Rhyme surprised him by laughing.

"Of course, Joshua. You call me naïve, but you have so much to learn yourself." She walked ahead, turned back and stunned him some more by winking, (was that an _almost _smirk on her face?!) and headed for a ramen place.

After a moment of pause he went after her.

"_Me? I_ have so much to learn? Explain." He didn't bother to hide his irritation.

She waggled a finger, pushing the door open. "I would like to Joshua, but I have a condition."

He raised an eyebrow by way of reply, standing next to a booth while Rhyme ordered the food. She came back, handing him his favorite noodles, sitting down across from him. He leaned back, sighing.

"Hmm, I'm in _paradise_."

Rhyme smiled into her food, her head lowered.

"So," he said between bites of the noodles. "What was your condition?"

"I want to know what you wished at Hachiko's fountain." She replied, looking nervous but determined, her slim fingers finding their way around her bell necklace.

"Hmm…" He drawled, to stall for time. Should he tell her? Would it improve the situation? His own curiosity was dying to get the meaning of her words; of course he could just scan her…

"Why shouldn't I just scan you?"

"I thought you enjoyed a challenge." She playfully pouted.

"Ah, but the back route is so much easier."

She shrugged, looking defeated. "Okay, I guess I can't make you. I just really wanted to know, it bugged me a lot last night." She sighed, looking so crestfallen that Joshua felt just the faintest pang of guilt.

"Hmm…I'll tell you my wish, but on…" He held up two fingers. "_Two_ conditions of my own."

"Okay." Rhyme brightened considerably, which caused Joshua to smirk, violet eyes shining.

"I want you to spend the day with me tomorrow, as the first condition."

"L-Like a date?" She stammered.

"Please, I do not participate in just trivial matters, dear Rhyme. No, but sometimes I really have nothing to do, and you're such _good_ company." He drawled the word, but the way he said it made Rhyme shiver noticeably, and he giggled.

"Th-the other?"

"I want to know how I have something to learn. That bit first."

"Okay. You and Neku are similar…"

Joshua pursed his lips.

"Not trusting others. You need to open up more, Joshua, and stop seeing others as tools and objects. We're people with feelings, and we can help you with any problem, if you just let us. Okay? Take my advice, please." She pleaded. Joshua's smirk softened into smile.

"I see." He murmured.

"I-I've got to get back to the hospital." Rhyme blurted, looking nervous. "See you. Unless, you're coming?"

"No, I've got to get back to the UG." Joshua lied. Truth was, he didn't, but he wanted some time to think. Rhyme smiled, turning to leave, and Joshua couldn't stop himself from saying,

"See you soon, Raimu." Her name sounded so smooth but foreign on his tongue, and she paused, looking embarrassed, before waving quickly and leaving the shop.

Leaving the ramen place and entering the UG, Joshua once again heard poetry, as if Rhyme induced it, playing in his mind. He smirked.

_A part of you has grown in me, together forever we shall be. Never apart, maybe in distance, but not in heart._

_~***~_

"Yo, you doin' alright Rhyme?" Beat asked, looking away from the TV to look at his little sister. She smiled, looking up from her book.

"I'm doing fine, Beat."

He shrugged, looking back at the sport game that was on. "Aight, aight. You jus' bein' real quiet, yo. Somethin' on your mind?"

"Hmm nothing I can't handle." She murmured, too hushed for him to hear.

Her thoughts raced ahead of her, even though her eyes were on the book, the words on the page seemed like gibberish at the moment.

_You're insane. This can' be happening. Surely. He's dead, first of all._

However, the other part of her responded:

_Is he really? He doesn't seem like it._

She tapped her fingers on the table.

_Of _course_ he doesn't "seem like it"! Besides, who knows how old he is?_

_Doesn't look that old to me._

_Aren't you a little young to be dating?_

_It's not a date._

Whilst in the middle of her internal monologue, Rhyme's eyes finally noticed the words in her book, and when she did, she held it closer to her face, studying the letters that finally formed words, then sentences. Rhyme smiled then, and read the words aloud.

"The human heart, at whatever age, opens to the heart that opens in return."

~***~

_**Guess what? This chapter was COMPLETELY rewritten twice before I finally thought it acceptable enough. *Waves a little flag* Go me. Would you like to review? They make me happy. =)**_

_**Also, I know Sota and Nao are dead. *sad face* I just decided to give them a little cameo. I wanted to do a story on them…Maybe.**_


	4. Star

**Songs and Poetry**

Star

"_Promises are like stars, the darker the night the brighter they shine."_

~***~

_Oh my gosh._

These were the first words Rhyme thought of when she woke up. She rolled over in her bed, cracking open her eyes to study the alarm clock.

**8:01 AM**

_Why do I wake up so early?_ She asked herself, sitting up and pushing stray strands of hair from her eyes. She went through the usual morning rituals, brushing her hair and changing her clothes, then headed down the hall of their small apartment to the kitchen.

Beat was there, eating cereal, rolling it around in his mouth, making a face.

"Mornin', Rhyme. Ya think this is…" He made another face, chewing the cereal slowly. She smiled in return, greeting her brother cheerfully, fixing some toast.

"Do I think it is what?"

He paused, spoon still in his mouth, before he leaped up with a gag and raced out of the kitchen, knocking over his chair, the yellow cereal box, and the bowl all in one smooth motion.

Rhyme winced at every impact, counting the noises in her head.

**Thump.**

_Bump._

Crash, clatter.

_That would be the chair, the box, the bowl, and the spoon. _Rhyme sighed, opening a cabinet to search for the paper towels.

She picked up everything, cleaning up her brother's mess, her thoughts wandering.

_Today's the day I'm supposed to hang out with Joshua…was he serious?_

_When isn't he? _She asked herself with a frown, preparing to have an internal monologue with herself again.

_He's just toying with you; remember what Shiki said about him?_

Rhyme grimaced, remembering her friend's surprisingly harsh words on him.

_True, but on the other hand he hurt Neku, who Shiki likes, right? And he's my friend too, I should feel the same way…but he's changed lately, and I can see it. I'd like to think I'm doing it…but am I? Maybe he's changing himself. He changes with Shibuya, I guess._

Tossing out the soiled towels, she straightened the chair, still deep in thought.

_Maybe he's just tricking you again! Joshua may mean well, but he can go through the world's most twisted routes to show it. Is he worth giving a chance?_

Everyone _deserves a second chance, or maybe a third or fourth chance…_

Rhyme blinked as Beat staggered around the corner, clutching his stomach.

"I don't feel well, yo. It's like…it's like…there's somethin' jumpin' in my stomach…and it's got big feet…"

"A kangaroo?" Rhyme asked. He really did look pale; his forehead was breaking out in a sweat too.

"Y-yeah. Ugh." He stumbled into the kitchen chair he had previously vacated, eyes closed.

Rhyme studied the cereal box, "Golden Wheat Flakes", turning it over in her hands.

"We haven't had this cereal in a while, where did you find it?"

"Th' back of the cabinet." He moaned in response. Rhyme raised her eyebrows.

"_What?_ Beat, we…oh, why did you even _eat _this?" She placed her hand in the box, removing a "golden wheat flake", which was in reality just a flat, thin corn shaving. She held it up for her brother to see, and then she snapped it. It made a soft crackling noise, instead of a crisp pop, and then shed bright yellow crumbs across the brown surface of the small table. Closer inspection revealed it to be very pale compared to the picture, and there were tiny holes were it had steadily broken down.

"This expired _months ago, _almost a year!I hope you'll be okay…"

Rhyme's gaze softened, and she sighed, helping Beat to his feet and leading him to his room. He followed sluggishly, leaning against Rhyme for support, and when she kicked his door open he dropped down on his bed, facedown. His sister smiled, rolling him over, and pulled the blankets up.

"Hey, I'll be right back." Rhyme informed him, heading for the bathroom. She quickly wet a cold facecloth, then got Beat a glass of water with a pill.

She knelt down by his bed, placing the cloth on his head.

"Here, take the pill, okay? Sometimes I wonder who the older sibling here is."

Beat did as he was told, making a face, then he smiled at her.

"Hey, thanks, Rhyme…You won't tell our parents, will ya?"

"'Course not. Hopefully it's just food poisoning. Get some sleep, then."

Rhyme turned on the radio, set the volume down, and then closed the door, stepping out into the living room. Her parents were at work, so she guessed she was alone, since Beat was probably snoring loudly. She snatched her almost forgotten toast out of the toaster, and then sat down.

"I find it amusing that you have to take care of him."

She froze, moving her eyes from the TV to look beside her, and then she leaped back.

"Yikes! Ever try knocking?" Rhyme sighed; dropping back on the couch after the initial surprise had passed.

"Whatever do you mean? I simply came to pick you up." Joshua replied, purple eyes narrowed in silent laughter.

She smiled nervously in return, looking down at her clasped hands. "Well, I don't know if I can go today, Joshua."

"That's awfully rude of you, seeing as you agreed." His tone carried a hint of annoyance.

"I know, but Beat's sick now, and I don't want to leave him…what if he needs me while I'm gone?"

"He can call you." The Composer said with a roll of his pretty amethyst eyes.

_When did they become amethyst? They're just violet, or purple. Not like gems._

"Well…"

Joshua leaned forward, smirking. "He can call you, and I promise if he does, we'll come right back, provided it's an _emergency_ of course." His eyes sparkled with a look she wasn't sure she could trust.

Rhyme toyed with her necklace, thinking hard. "Well…okay. But how much do your promises mean?"

"My promise is my word, and I _never_ go back on my word." He drawled.

Rhyme gave him a long, intelligent look, puzzling over every detail to the words he had said. She was silent for so long, she felt a little amused when he began to fidget with his phone, flipping it open and closing it, patiently waiting for her response.

He could wait forever, because she learned that Joshua can be patient whenever he needs to be, but he'd rather make events happen earlier, if he had any control over it. Her eyes lifted upward, and she smiled.

"What's the temperature out there?"

"Might want to get a jacket." He replied smoothly.

Rhyme stood up, heading to her room and grabbing a jacket, heart pounding in her chest for reasons she couldn't figure out. She opened her cell phone and quickly left a message for Beat.

_I'm going out with Shiki, be back in a bit. Message me if you need anything!_

Afterwards, she stepped into the living room and called Shiki, who picked up on the third ring.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Shiki. If Beat calls, tell him I'm with you, okay?"

"Hmm? Where are you going?" Shiki's voice was muffled, she probably had a needle in it and by the pop music in the background, she was most likely at Eri's house.

"I'm…going out with a friend." Rhyme said uneasily.

Shiki giggled. "A _boy_ friend?"

"Er-yeah." It was easier to say that than to explain.

Shiki said something in the background, and Rhyme winced, hearing Eri squeal with her.

"Who's the lucky gentleman?" Eri asked faintly, while Shiki repeated the question.

"I'll tell you later."

"Okay, but I want _all_ the details. We've got your back, have fun!"

Rhyme hung up, and then she smiled apologetically at the smirking Joshua.

"Sorry about that. Let's go." She narrowed her eyes, studying him. She could have _sworn_ he hadn't been wearing a jacket when she had left him alone a minute ago and now he was wearing the light tan jacket she had selected for him back in the mall.

If he noticed her scrutinizing stare, he didn't say anything. He just opened the door and bowed.

"Shall we?"

~***~  
"Where exactly are we going?" Rhyme asked him as she slipped elegantly around the hundreds of marching feet, blue eyes lifted toward him.

Joshua smiled, enjoying the confused look on her face. He disliked giving out direct answers if it could be avoided, and of course this could _easily_ be avoided.

"Nowhere in particular."

"Josh…"

"Oh alright. We're going to a store." He replied vaguely.

Rhyme looked like she was going to roll her eyes, but she just smiled instead. "Okay."

Joshua searched the crowds as they walked, picking out Reapers from among the average folks, and Players who were hopelessly wandering the streets, trying to figure out what to do. He winced, glad Rhyme couldn't see, when a Grizzly Noise pounced on a partner-less girl, almost tearing her apart before she escaped. Rhyme walked through the Grizzly, and faintly shivered, as if she had felt it.

Here and there the wind would blow a sharp, biting gust that carried a hint of rain inside it. The scent disturbed the other city smells, ramen, hot dogs, and fumes from the cars…

He paused, noticing Rhyme had stopped somewhere back. He turned around, feigning surprise.

"Oh? Is there a problem, Rhyme?"

Joshua noticed she hesitated in answering, and then she just shook her head and smiled.

"Good. This way, then."

They ended up inside a pet shop, and he smiled at her expression as she paced back and forth from cage to cage, surveying the species in each of their little prisons. He found himself smiling more often in her presence, but that never stopped his mind.

_These animals are very similar to some people. They have their own personalities and lives, and each of their worlds end at their cages._

Joshua smirked, rubbing the ears on a fluffy orange kitten.

_They are also different from people, peeking through holes in their worlds, trying to desperately get the attention of someone to take them with them, so they can get a home and a family that hopefully will love them. They can't get their own world until someone opens it for them…._

"Would you like one?" He said unexpectedly, eyeing her as she bent down to look at something.

Rhyme paused, lifting her head from petting some rabbits in a bin.

"Sorry?"

"Would you like a pet?"

She frowned. "I can't, my family wouldn't be able to support it."

"Hmm, pity." He made a mental note to fix that. Someone like Rhyme didn't deserve to be almost poor.

Rhyme shook her head, studying some singing birds.

"No big deal, I can have plenty of pets at the shelter, and I can make sure each one gets to a good home."

Joshua resisted the urge to make a snide comment, and instead just offered they take a walk.

"A walk sounds fine." She replied, puzzled at his abrupt change of pace.

~***~

They were wandering around one of the green areas of Shibuya, this apparently used to be some old Emperor's private gardens that were now open to the public. The wind had picked up some more, but it had yet to rain. The sky above them was a stormy grey, the sun having long since vanished. It was roughly 1:30 right now, and still Rhyme had no idea where Joshua was taking her, even though he insisted he had a destination in mind.

She wasn't hungry, despite having only eaten toast, and she closed her eyes, just to enjoy the feel of the wind around her, and to listen to the rustling of the trees.

Suddenly, Joshua spoke, his voice close to her ear.

"Two of the fairest stars in all the heaven, having some business, do entreat her eyes, to twinkle in their spheres, 'till they return."

Rhyme froze, and then laughed nervously, stepping a little to the side, a little farther from him.

"Do you know what that is from?"

"Romeo and Juliet." She murmured.

"You read it?" He didn't sound surprised.

Rhyme giggled. "That's right, I do." She clasped her hands together, walking a little down the path. "The star crossed lovers idea is so overused, but I find it sweet. Sometimes I wish it was all real, but then again Shakespeare seemed to favor death scenes…Where are the happy endings in that?"

Joshua laughed, but it sounded humorless. "Oh, for me, life is one long Shakespearian play."

She closed her eyes, stopping near a tree.

_He's right. He can't find anyone, can he? We're all alive, and isn't he dead? We're all going to leave Shibuya soon, for whatever life has to give us, but he'll be stuck here, while we grow up and get married…_

"Don't give up, you'll find your special somebody."

"Ever consider I might have found her already?" He spoke like this was overly obvious, his tone scathing, slender arms crossed.

"Really?" Rhyme hopped around, staring at him thoughtfully. "Who?"

Joshua started that giggle again, and she realized why Neku thought it could get annoying.

"So naïve, dear Raimu. Try again. How many girls do I know?"

_Shiki, Eri, Konishi, and Uzuki. Probably more._

_And…me._

When her expression finally changed, Joshua smirked.

"Come on, let's head back to Hachiko's Wish, and I'll tell you what I wished for."

~***~  
Rhyme's eyes were on the side of the road, walking close to him as if he was steering her through the crowds.

She blinked, her expression pensive. Sometimes he wondered why she was always thinking, eyes focused on nothing, as if she could call forth her lost dreams with the slightest beckon of her thoughts. He could still hear it now, amid the other thoughts around him, her golden mind now tinged with shadow.

Then, Rhyme would smile at him whenever he caught her eye, closing her eyes in her honest, carefree grin that now seemed slightly less happy-go-lucky…

Oh, but that wouldn't stop the Composer of Shibuya from telling her what he felt. He was going to tell her today anyway, and what better place than a fountain where things supposedly come true? He was irritated with himself for dragging her around town simply because he was reluctant to get to the point, but he had an excuse for that.

The wind hissed loudly, sending a pinkish tint across Rhyme's pale face as she buried her face deeper in her jacket.

"We're here, Rhyme." Joshua informed her, hands clasping around his cell phone in his pocket, resisting the urge to fiddle with it.

"Oh."

They leaned against the fountain, and Rhyme said nothing, patiently waiting for him to speak first.

"So…you want to know what I wished for."

"Mmhmm." She hummed.

He flicked a strand of hair from his face. "Simply put, I wished you would find your dreams Rhyme."

There was a little intake of breath from her, and his smirk widened.

"What did you think I wished for?" He chided. "Honestly."

She stammered for a little bit, and then let it go. "That's sweet of you, Joshua. Thanks."

He put a hand up. "Oh please, it was easy. I'll be disappointed in this fountain if it doesn't work."

Rhyme turned around, brushing her fingers through the cold liquid, looking at the coins on the bottom.

"Can you make wishes come true?" She asked him quietly. Joshua shrugged.

"Can I? Perhaps. It depends on what wish that is, but an even more important question is…why _I should_. It'd be a waste of time and energy." His voice hardened, despite his best efforts.

He scoffed, thoughts darkening just at the _idea_ of anyone in Shibuya deserving-

_Ah wait, the city is a lot better than it once had been. It's clear we need more people like _her_ though._

"Thanks for keeping your promise, and I'm glad your wish came true." She told him.

Snapped out of his thoughts, the Composer raised his eyebrows.

"Pardon, dear Rhyme? You have a dream now?"

"Mmhmm."

"Mind telling me, or do I have to scan you?"

Rhyme looked thoughtful, her eyes flicking to the side. She smiled.

"I can tell you, I guess." She did a little twirl. "I want the whole world to have a dream, there's no such thing as a bad dream, just a bad way to execute it. My dream is for _others_ to find their dream."

"I disagree. If someone wanted to, say, destroy Shibuya…" He trailed off, giggling at her terrified expression.

"Well, do you mean destroy, as in blow up, or destroy, as in get rid of what is already there? Destroying Shibuya could be taken in the form of…say…changing it for the better…destroying the aspects that made it bad…" Even she looked unsure, thin fingers tapping each other.

Suddenly, her phone rang. Rhyme flipped open the device, reading the message.

"Oh, sorry Josh. I've got to go."

"Oh really? Is it an emergency?"

"Beat's feeling worse; I may need to take him to the hospital…"

"I'm afraid you can't."

Was that a glimmer of steel in her eyes?

"I'm sorry? Why not? You said I can go for emergencies!"

"But I didn't say _your_ version of an emergency. I don't see this as an emergency." He said in a dismissive tone, secretly laughing, just to see how she'd react.

"I'll make it up to you later, but I have to go." Rhyme turned around, walking a few steps.

"Raimu, are you going back on your word?"

Rhyme froze, hands clenching at her side before they relaxed.

"N-no. I'll get back to you, but Beat comes first." She prepared to run off, but Joshua grabbed her arm.

"Careful, all of this worry could attract Noise." He reprimanded, as if he was explaining something incredibly simple to a very unintelligent person.

"Please, Joshua." She pleaded.

_Well, now or never._

He placed his slender fingers on either side of her face, and he suppressed the urge to smirk at the red blush that spread across her features.

"Raimu, you intrigue me like no one else can." He dropped his voice, smiling, getting directly to the point. "Do you know that? Your thoughts are impossibly pure, despite everything that has happened to you, things you didn't deserve. So, I decided to observe you. I took you to different places today to see how you react to things, and to learn more about you." A brief pause, where he waited for her response, but when she said nothing besides her blush turning deeper, he giggled.

"What, no wise saying?"

"T-there is no nobler occupation in the world than to assist another human being…to help someone else achieve that of which they desire most." She mumbled it at first, but her voice grew stronger at the end.

Joshua puzzled over that statement, and then he nodded slowly. "That's your dream, isn't it? To help others find the way?"

She smiled in response; it was such a soft, nervous smile, as if she was afraid that he'd mock her for it that Joshua felt like laughing.

"Not just _the _way, _their _way." Rhyme said.

Joshua cocked his head to the side.

_Yes, we do need more people like her._

"I'll be happy to spend my life doing that, starting with Beat. Whom I need to go see." She reached her hands up to gently remove his own hands, but he quickly took her hands in his own, squeezing them gently. Her hands felt much warmer than his…

"Very well, Rhyme. On one condition."

She looked at him curiously, just waiting for the inevitable.

Joshua kissed her, even as the long awaited rain began to fall, moving in slow motion around them as thunder rumbled in the distance.

Almost like a bad omen.

Hesitantly, Rhyme reached up touch his hair, the action so unsure and innocent he wanted to laugh again.

Everything about her was as sweet as she was; in fact, the kiss was so perfect that he considered just letting it go on and on and on…

But he wasn't going to do that. He had a promise to keep.

Joshua pulled away, albeit a bit reluctantly, and smiled.

"Go on, you have to help your brother."

"Joshua…" She looked stunned, her hair flattened to her head by the pouring rain. He gently trailed his fingers across her face, smiling when she lifted her head a bit, eyes closed, then she blushed, blue eyes wide in confusion as she snapped them open, as if unable to believe she had done such a thing.

"Raimu…your brother?" He reminded her.

"O-oh. See you…" She turned to run off into the downpour, and when she looked back, she saw a glint of purple in the darkening maelstrom around her.

When she blinked, nothing was there.

Joshua, safe in the UG, the rain now following easily through him, muttered,

"Meeting you was fate, becoming your friend was choice. But falling in love with you was something I had no control over."

~***~

Later that night, Rhyme couldn't stop Joshua's face from floating across her mind. Whenever her eyes closed, she could imagine the…almost affectionate way he had looked at her by the fountain, and still feel the feather soft touch of his fingers on her face…

She looked out the window at the moon, which was rather lonely looking in the black sky, the harsh city lights blocking out its softer radiance.

_I thought Joshua was like the moon in the city, watching over everything, but having no other celestial company…_

Even as she watched, a single star appeared beside it. Just one.

_Maybe that's how he is now._

That night was the first night he appeared in her dreams. Not as prominent as the rest of her friends, but still there.

_Thanks for keeping your promise._

***

_**This chapter was actually edited quite a lot, but I still don't really like it…**_

_**Hmm. Review anyway?**_

_**And, no worries LT. You're still the undisputed master of all Joshyme, I mean, if you look up "Perfection" in the dictionary, your name and face is right next to it.**_

_**Thanks to everyone that reviewed so far, about two or three more chapters to go. This is about as in character as I can make it, to be honest. School's tomorrow...But I promise an update a week. That should work out fine.**_


	5. Love

**Songs and Poetry**

Love

"_Letting go doesn't mean giving up, but rather accepting there are things that cannot be."_

~***~

Is there a word to describe the feeling they had?

A single, small word that can describe the butterflies in Rhyme's stomach, a single, small word that can describe the true smile on Joshua's face?

How can a single word sum up the emotion that danced inside their hearts, even one that had long ago stopped beating?

Bliss.

Ecstasy.

Happiness.

_Love._

Yes, Rhyme was certain, and her closed eyes only confirmed this fact as she rested back on her hands nearby him, smiling at the sky.

Her absolute certainty, her happiness, amused Joshua, almost like one would feel watching a cat walk by with its tail in the air, head lifted high. He stopped scanning her thoughts and instead let the breeze blow his hair around as he mimicked her position, watching the small ripples that spread across the pond at the little park they were at.

Ever since that one rainy day, Rhyme hadn't brought it up, she just smiled whenever Joshua appeared, and they went off somewhere to do whatever they felt like. He cracked an eye open, watching her now, as she picked up a smooth grey pebble and flung it across the pond.

Skip, skip, and skip, then ploosh.

She paused to smile at him, obviously indicating he should go next. Joshua idly picked up a pebble, because he did things when he wanted and no sooner or later, and ran his fingers across the dull brown stone, moist from the water. He suddenly flicked his wrist, so fast that Rhyme almost missed it, and it skipped across the lake, cleared it, and slammed into a tree, shedding what he believed to be sakura petals in showers down on the water. There was a dull thud to be heard, and then several branches dropped off while there was now a sizable dent in the tree.

"Oops." He said lazily, stretching back to fold his arms behind his head. Rhyme laughed, laying her head on his chest.

"Show off." She said affectionately, closing her eyes. Joshua smiled, running his fingers through her hair.

"Why of course, dear Rhyme, that wasn't the best I could do, but I didn't want to break a sweat."

He was still pleasantly surprised at the giddy, content feeling that was constantly in the air around him now. Eyes closed, he listened to the hum of her thoughts, answering her unspoken question, which had just swum across her mind like a frog in a pond.

"No, dear, I don't _have_ to stay in Shibuya."

She opened her blue eyes, fixing him with a curious stare.

"If I do…I'll probably lose my power, or die, or both, if gone for too long."

"Oh." She murmured, sounding disappointed.

"Why were you thinking that?" He asked her, withdrawing from her thoughts to let her answer herself.

Rhyme shifted to look at him better, biting her lip.

"I'm…well, I'll leave Shibuya at some point, Josh. Beat and I were going to go…traveling…and I wanted to help out places that need it, for my charity work."

Joshua narrowed his purple eyes, and then relaxed them. If anything, he was persuasive. Perhaps he could convince her to stay? Not that he really was going to _force_ her…

"I know you'll all leave." He closed his eyes again, sighing. "I'm _technically_ tethered here. I'll miss Neku, Shiki, and even Beat. But most of all…" He paused to bring his hand down to hold her face and she looked at him sadly. "I'll miss you, Raimu."

"Joshua…I don't have to go."

"No, I suppose you don't, but you want to, don't you?"

When she didn't answer right away, he wasn't sure what to say. He half wanted to laugh aloud, the other half felt sad he was chaining her here. He stroked her hair, letting his thoughts wander.

_And thus, Joshua, she's in love with you, and face it; you're in love with her too. Then…why can't you go with her?_

He knew why. He could, technically, but he'd have to hand the Composer position to someone else, and frankly no one else _deserved _it.

_I'd give it to Neku, but he isn't dead…And I won't kill him again either._

This presented an evil little problem that Joshua couldn't solve easily. It greatly vexed him when this happened, because he felt like he was losing control of the situation.

_Losing? You already lost it the day in the mall._

"You're not angry, are you?" Her voice interrupted his thoughts.

Blinking, He glanced at her. "Hmm? Of course not."

Rhyme sat up, sighing. "I think I've been ditching my charity work lately, I need to head to the shelter." She stood up, and Joshua got to his feet with her. He had no idea if he was willing to waste his time helping others, but decided he might as well. The lack of Games lately was convenient, but puzzling, and who was he to question a good thing? As long as it wasn't _too_ long, the Reapers wouldn't drop dead on him, or drop Erased, or whatever dead people do when they "die" again.

While pondering the irony of this situation, Rhyme had already led him to the shelter. He mostly just stood back, not liking to really exert himself, and watched her help serve food to the homeless. He twirled a lock of silvery hair around his finger, once again aware of the terrible truth.

_She's going to leave, and I can't go with her._

Joshua had no idea how much this bothered him until that moment.

_She's going to leave one day, and I'm going to be here alone again._

A part of his mind whispered, _No, you don't._

Did he have a Noise form? Perhaps. What did the Noise signify? Was it anger, aggression, bestial instincts?

Perhaps. Technically, as Composer, his Noise form was his Composer appearance, but he didn't need to know any of this to identify this was his more conceited side talking.

_You can just kill her._

His blood ran colder than it already was.

_She'd have to stay then, because not only will she _leave_, she'll get _older.

Joshua studied Rhyme again, who lifted her head to smile at him. She beckoned him over, mouthing, "You can't be here and not _help_!", since her voice was drowned out by the noise around them.

He went over to her, but his thoughts were still deeply bothered.

~***~

Joshua's eyes were clouded with something like confusion.

It was disconcerting to see, since he always looked so _sure._ He was like the God of Shibuya, he prowled the streets, _his_ streets, smiling and smirking because he _knew_ there was no one to challenge him.

Not only that, but he was _shameless_. Neku had once given him a parasol from Lapin Angelique as a joke, and he had just twirled it and gone on about how the sun simply _couldn't_ touch his skin, much to the amusement of the others present, and Neku's fury.

Joshua also _always_ knew what was going on. Seeing him confused was so disturbing that for a moment all the other things around her bled away. The brown wood room, the tables, the chatter, the poor, unfortunate people around her, they were all gone. All she saw was him, his violet eyes averted as he approached.

"Something the matter?" She asked him, the rest of the world coming back in a whoosh. Rhyme placed her hand on his, smiling at him. Joshua smirked, but the expression looked halfhearted.

"Nothing's the matter, dear."

"Don't lie. Lies are like a house of cards, they'll all come tumbling down eventually."

Joshua just giggled, but he was lacking the usual animation he had when talking, he was just…still. "Ah, no, Rhyme. Some lies are for the better."

She blinked briefly in confusion, and then nodded, turning to spoon something into someone's bowl. She could feel his eyes on her, and she squirmed slightly, uncomfortable. Rhyme smiled at him again, and she was disappointed when he didn't respond, just stared at the sky, brow furrowed as he crossed his arms.

_Please, Josh, answer me._

She didn't like seeing strangers in trouble, let alone friends, and she was desperate to make it up to him. She wanted to help.

They left the shelter later, entering the screaming, roaring streets of Shibuya in the late afternoon. Joshua seemed to _repel_ people, so they walked more easily, and Rhyme was still unhappy that he hadn't smiled or smirked or did _anything_. She rubbed her hands together, looking at the sky which was beginning to cloud once more.

What was her opinion on their relationship? Unique, that was all. But love was _never ever_ wrong, and she was secure in that fact.

However, Rhyme also knew there were some issues that would come up later, but she wanted to live in the moment…

Like CAT usually said.

"Why are you frowning?"

She blinked, knocked out of her thoughts, looking up at Joshua. He was looking at her with an intent expression, but at least he had some emotion this time.

"I'm sad because you are."

"I'm not sad." He said calmly.

"Really? Then why haven't you smiled today? Smiles brighten the day and your soul."

"I see. I've got some problems, that's all, nothing for you to concern yourself with."

"Joshua." She stated flatly. "Please. Tell me what's wrong. You don't trust _anyone_, do you?"

"This is nothing you can help with." His tone was dangerous. "I'll straighten it out."

They continued to walk, but when Joshua reached for her hand, she crossed her arms.

~***~

_She's how old? Fourteen?_

_You're…much older than her. Even your youngest form is older than her. But she loves you regardless, and you do too, so why not seal your eternal bond together and simply end her life? She'll enter the Game, maybe become a Reaper or Angel, thus having to not play it again, and-_

Joshua shook his head. He was absolutely _not_ going to kill Raimu, especially since Beat would make it his mission in life-and death-to personally murder him and rip him to tiny pieces for the dogs to eat.

Not that it wouldn't be amusing to see him try, but Joshua didn't really want it to come to this point.

He walked Rhyme home as the sun began to set, and he was knocked out of his thoughts by her voice.

"You've been quiet all day today."

_Because I'm deciding whether or not to kill you._

"Is something the matter?" She continued.

_Yes, _everything_ is the matter._

"It's…not about the leaving thing, is it? I'm not even old enough to drive, don't worry, I'll be here for a while longer yet." She hesitated, then stretched her hand out and gently took his, smiling up at him. Joshua smiled back, brought her hand up to kiss it, and then he smirked.

"My deepest apologies dear, I've just been thinking a lot lately."

"Anything I can help with?" She asked again cheerily, but her eyes were troubled.

"Actually, yes. How much do you love life?" He giggled as she paled, looking confused, obviously not expecting him to answer.

"…A lot?"

"Hmm I figured. See you, dear." He waved before walking down the street, disappearing before he even reached the street light.

"What's the matter with him?" Rhyme muttered.

~***~

She was sleeping now, this he knew, and he just sat there watching her.

_I'm such a stalker._ He thought with a small giggle. _However, I don't come to simply watch._

His fingers brushed over the small gun in his pocket, touching the cold metal. One shot, and he could be with her forever.

One shot to end a life.

One shot to destroy a dream.

One shot to vanquish a wish.

One shot to devastate a family.

And thus, with the rain pattering the windows outside, Joshua removed the gun from his pocket and pointed it straight at Rhyme. A conversation from earlier replayed in his mind, not one he had with Beat or Shiki, but with Neku.

_Neku's eyes narrowed to blue slits. "I don't know what you're playing at, but it's not cool, Josh. Leave Rhyme alone, don't you know how _old_ you are compared to her? She's only fourteen!"_

_Joshua had smirked. "Love doesn't know any ages, Neku."_

"_Screw that!" He shouted. "I'm not losing another friend to you! I know you! You'll kill her! She's better off living a real life than eternal death in the UG!"_

_He had remained composed, smiling faintly. "But Neku, dear, I didn't know you cared about her this way."_

"_If you were doing this to _anyone_ I knew; I'd react this way." He retorted. He leaned in close, his voice harsh. "Listen, Josh, don't just think about yourself. What about her family? Her friends? She'll ask why she can't go back to the RG, you'll probably lie, and then I'll make sure that _when_ she comes to check up on Beat and the others, I'll be saying over and over the truth. I'll tell Beat, and we'll _personally_ escort you to hell!"_

Joshua closed his eyes, his fingers wrapped around the trigger, but not enough to fire it. Even if he didn't now, when she actually reached his current "age", he might be tempted to end her life, right then and there.

Because to be honest, and he hated this weakness, he wanted to spend every single day with her.

She was sleeping now, blissfully unaware, a small smile on her features as she dreamed. Her hands tightened around her pillow, but not in a nightmarish way.

Joshua was frozen, immobile, gun pointed at her head, when she spoke.

"Joshua…"

He blinked, lowering the gun and looking in an almost guilty way at her before changing smoothly into his usual cynical expression.

She was still asleep, he realized, as she did nothing but rollover and sigh.

Curious, he scanned her thoughts. Dreams were always fragmented, and he couldn't see anything, but he just _sensed_ that she was relatively calm and happy.

He paused for so long his body was starting to hurt from standing up. Hours could have gone by, and he would've been unaware. All he knew of was that single girl sleeping, and the life that hung on the line.

He raised the gun again, preparing to shoot, when something echoed in his head.

_True love doesn't have a happy ending, because true love never ends. __Letting__ go is one way of saying I love you._

Joshua felt so conflicted that he was reminded of a period in his mortal life, which seemed like ages and ages ago. Now he just stood there like a simpleton, and he did three things.

Thing number one: He put away the gun.

Thing number two: He pulled Rhyme's covers up and apologized.

Thing number three: He left.

Somehow, just these three things were the hardest to do. He was used to doing what he wanted, and _not_ doing it was strange. He figured a few things, though.

_First and foremost, Raimu, I have no right to take your life away and not give it back. Even with Neku I gave it back…I should be happy to see you grow and mature instead of trying to keep you at whatever period in your life I want you to be at._

_And maybe…you'll come of your own free will anyway._

~***~

_**Sorry for the total badness of this chapter, but the next two will be a lot better, I promise. I intended to skip directly to the chapters I had already planned, but my brother who is totally against Joshyme asked if I would add this chapter.**_

_**That being said, I know it's not as good as the others, review.**_


	6. Life

**Songs and Poetry**

Life

"_This is my wish for you: Comfort on difficult days, smiles when sadness intrudes, rainbows to follow the clouds, laughter to kiss your lips, sunsets to warm your heart, hugs when spirits sag, beauty for your eyes to see, friendships to brighten your being, faith so that you can believe, confidence for when you doubt, courage to know yourself, patience to accept the truth, and Love to complete your life.__"_

Rhyme situated herself on the roof of her apartment home. The city lights stretched out in front of her from between a gap in two taller buildings. The wind was cold, but the two buildings on either side of her blocked out most of it nicely. The moon was out, and it's single star companion that stubbornly outshone the city lights, refusing to be blocked out. She smiled; wrapping her hands around herself, pausing only to turn on the small stereo that was beside her and turned the volume up as it began to start.

A sort of techno pop song, (she never knew which), began to play. She leaned back, eyes closed, as she enjoyed the solitude. Her parents had argued again with Beat, but he made her promise to leave him alone just for a little bit, he'd come back, he said. She trusted him, (he probably went over to Eri's, which he had been doing more and more often strangely), and waited.

She sang along, fingers tapping the stone wall she was resting on.

"_Let me go, gravity, what's on my shoulder? 'Little by little I feel a bit better'. Let me know, set me free, I feel a bit older, just once more 'till the breach, dear friend once more…"_

Rhyme wondered where Joshua was. She missed him. He hadn't come by since his unusual quietness a few days ago…Maybe he had a Game?

"_Wake up, leave your hesitation. Wake up, time for us to realize. Wake up, show appreciation. Wake up, time for us to realize…"_

The song changed into another one, and Rhyme sighed, drawing her legs up to her chest. This song was steadier, and slower, the voice softer.

"_There may not be an answer to this too. __Why the sky is blue, is the change in me all true?__Now that you are next to me,__I have no fears and all I know is that I want to be with you__…"_

Her heart lifted, unable to stop a smile from creeping across her face, because she felt someone's breath touch her ear.

"That song matches you much better."

"Joshua!" She said happily. He smirked, and stood still as she hugged him. "Was there something wrong?" She asked, raising her head to look at him.

His violet eyes glimmered. "It's all fixed now." He sat down, casting a disdainful glare at the stereo. She laughed, sitting down beside him.

"Not a fan of love songs?"

"Not personally, dear." He twirled a strand of her hair around his finger, and Rhyme was surprised to see she wasn't blushing or embarrassed in his presence anymore. She timidly entwined her fingers with his, and he didn't look at her, but returned the gesture.

"Rhyme, can I change the song?"

"You'd do it even if I said no?"

"Of course."

"There's not that great radio reception around here." She replied, stifling a giggle, since she wasn't sure exactly what he listened to. She had a very educated guess though. Joshua's lips twitched as he smiled.

"You honestly believe I listen to that?" He sounded offended, gesturing to the radio, but his eyes were playful. He looked so much better, like something had been removed from his chest, but Rhyme was observant enough to sense his…nervousness?

He removed his phone, clicking away at it, before a disk materialized beside him. He placed it in the stereo, closing the cover and pushing the button before putting his phone away.

"Is that phone your psyche?"

"Perceptive. But I'm not saying."

He smiled as a classical song started up, (as Rhyme guessed), but it was unlike anything she had ever heard. It…swirled around her, almost as if she could touch it, and she smiled, closing her eyes at the violins, harps, singing chorus…And to her surprise, an almost hidden "rap" beat to it that she liked.

She opened her eyes in surprise to see Joshua had stood up, facing her, offering her his hand. She didn't get it at first, and then she gasped.

"I-I can't. Please don't."

He twitched his fingers, smirking. "Try it. Just once."

There was a pause, and then Rhyme blushed, taking his offered hand. His fingers were cool, but that may have been the weather. He helped her to his feet, then took her hands, eyeing her with a crooked smile that was _almost _charming except for the fact he was doing that annoying giggling.

Oh whatever, it _was_charming.

The music continued to play and Joshua led her through a dance. Rhyme was paranoid she'd step on his expensive "Pegaso" shoes, but she didn't. Not even when he directed her, his soft voice the only thing she was listening to, through a diagonal glide, several slow turning portions, and finally ending with a spin.

He picked her up easily, whirling around before placing her back down. He bowed low, and Rhyme laughed nervously.

"That was bad, right?" She lowered her head, but Joshua gently tilted her face up and withdrew his hand.

He then smirked again. "Not at all. You didn't make a single mistake. What a fast learner you are, Rhyme." He giggled again, and then took the CD out.

"Did you make that?"

It vanished in a flash of white light. "Yes and no. I composed the symphony but Sanae actually got someone to play it."

He sat down and she sat next to him. "What's it called?"

"Rhythm and Rhyme." Joshua replied smoothly, eyeing her with his customary grin.

"It's a unique song."

He hummed in response to that, obviously pleased, and she was reminded heavily of a cat. Rhyme laid her head on his shoulder, looking at the sky.

"I don't think I'll forget that dance anytime soon."

"Likewise."

"How long have you known to…?" She asked curiously.

"A very long time." He chuckled. Then he said unexpectedly, "If I never met you, I wouldn't like you."

Puzzled, Rhyme let him continue.

"If I didn't like you, I wouldn't love you."

She realized he was reciting poetry again, for her benefit. She felt warm inside and he just continued, his elegant voice weaving through the words like fingers through a harp.

"If I didn't love you, I wouldn't miss you. But I did, I do, and I will."

She laughed, and he brushed his hair from his face, smirking. "Thank you, dear. I'll be here for all eternity." There was a hint of sadness in his voice now, but a smirk replaced it. He averted his eyes for a moment, and then looked at her again. "Well, not_ all_ eternity. I have to stop being Composer at some point."

"But you're not going to go easy." It wasn't a question.

"Of course not, it's impossible for me to release _anything_ easy."

He laughed, but his tone had changed, and she was about to sit up to look at him until he wrapped an arm around her to hold her still. "Raimu…"

Uh oh, he had said her real name. "Is something wrong?" She asked gently.

"Not at all." Joshua faced her now, trailing his fingers through her hair before resting it on her cheek. She leaned into his hand, smiling, wondering what he had to say.

"Raimu, do you love me?"

Such a simple sentence, with only five words, but a meaning that conveyed more than any book, movie, or anything else in the world. The deep, emotional meaning to it shook Rhyme to her core, since she knew Joshua rarely opened up like this.

She _knew_ the pause was too long, she _knew_ it looked bad, but she was stunned. Finally, she gasped out before he removed his hand, "Of course."

"Then there's something we need to bring up before we move any farther." Joshua's voice was serious, his face expressionless and still. "I'm _dead_, dear."

"I know." She said simply.

"What do you say to that?"

"I don't know. It doesn't change anything." She promised.

"Naivety." He scowled, but she thought he sounded pleased. "I love you not only for what you are, but for what I become when I'm with you." He smirked like this was amusing news. "Love isn't just what you make yourself; it's what you make of others. I think only you could bring this part out."

She didn't know what to say, she just smiled as he leaned forward to kiss her, closing her eyes and leaning into the kiss. When they finally broke apart, Joshua asked her another question.

"Raimu, do you want to spend forever with me?" His amethyst eyes shone into hers, and she could see…a lot of his character in their depths. Determination, intelligence, but he was genuinely serious when he said he loved her.

Before she could answer, Joshua, who had been still holding her, flinched, then shrugged. "It was bound to happen anyway." She swore his ear had twitched, like a cat did when it was annoyed. Or when it heard something.

Rhyme was about to ask what when the door opened, and Beat came up, flanked by Shiki and Neku, followed by Eri. The door slammed into the wall and Beat stomped forward, still unaware of how loud he was, probably disturbing the neighbors.

"Yo, Rhyme! Guess who came to visit-_holy crap_! Le' go of my sister!"

Eri surprised everyone by grabbing Beat and succeeding in holding him still, though she almost fell over. "Calm down, Beat!"

There was a pause, and then Shiki began to panic.

"Oh my God! Why didn't I see this sooner? Oh em gee! O M G! O-"

There was a smacking sound, then Shiki blinked, rubbing her cheek as Neku glared at her, then directed his death gaze at Joshua.

"What was the slap for?" Shiki pouted.

"That was a high five to the face, dear." Joshua giggled, and Neku pointed a finger at him.

"Damn it Josh! I _told_ you leave her alone!"

"You _knew_, man?!" Beat roared, lunging again and this time it took both Eri and Shiki to hold him still.

"I was hoping he wouldn't break his promise, you rat bast-"

"Tsk, language. Children are present, Neku."

"ARGH!"

"C'mere, Rhyme!" Beat ordered, and she blinked, looking guiltily at Joshua.

"Only if you want." He told her, winking while he toyed with her hair, gently pulling the strands, which caused Beat to scream like a maniac.

"JOSH!" Neku darted forward, and Joshua planted a kiss on Rhyme's lips again before vanishing into thin air.

"No more, Rhyme! Stay away from that ass!" Beat was still furious, with no sign of calming down. "He's manipulative, (Did I say that right?), that guy's a murderer an' a liar-"

Rhyme blushed, looking at the ground. "You're wrong." She mumbled quietly.

"Wha'?"

"You're wrong about him. He's not like you think." Rhyme stalked past her friends and brother, walking away.

~***~

That night, Rhyme got a message on her phone. She rolled over in bed to read it.

_I don't personally care what they think._

Rhyme smiled; too tired to write another message since it was almost four AM.

That night, though, she tried to decipher what he had said to her. Joshua's voice echoed in her mind.

"_Raimu, do you want to spend forever with me?"_

Yes, yes she did.

But not in the way he was suggesting.

~***~

_**Er-I've edited this from my original idea, because it wouldn't work now that I thought about it. And…the next chapter is the last. I might do another Joshyme if you want…The next chapter is a lot more interesting, I swear. Okay?**_

'_**K. Good. Now, I'd like to thank everyone that has reviewed and added this to favorites. I've seen some people with this on favorites, but haven't commented. Feel free to! Or not.**_

_**I'm so glad; I just noticed some of my stories are in communities. Awesome. **_

_**Yeah. Review, if you will. Slow chapters are needed to get to the climax sometimes. The climax I'm really pleased with, actually.**_


	7. Gone

**Songs and Poetry**

Gone

"_When we lose __one__ we love, our bitterest tears are called forth by the memory of hours when we __loved__ not enough.__"_

Time.

It's unstoppable.

There may be those that fight it, and even if you do not change physically by the movement, it still affects you. Everything around you will change, and time marches on, a cruel mistress, sometimes not going fast enough and sometimes moving too slowly.

But it goes at its own pace, and time used to be a rather annoying factor to Joshua, but now as he's looking back on all of those precious memories that led up to the event of Raimu Bito actually falling in love with him, he wonders where the time went. Because today is the day he has been dreading, and he walks slowly, because he moves at his own pace and no one else's, and today the pace is slow.

He's walking to Rhyme's house for her seventeenth birthday. His violet eyes are closed but the thoughts and memories crossing his mind do not need his mortal sight to see.

The Composer of Shibuya has clairvoyance, the ability to see with a sort of sixth sense if you will. As soon as these strange emotions made themselves present when he met Rhyme, Joshua flicked to his Composer form and checked the Music around them.

The Music presented him with a certain image he always saw, and he's been painfully aware of, since that night they had danced-and been discovered-on Rhyme's rooftop. That dreadful image he never wanted to come true, but he could tell today was the day it was to happen.

He smirked, because he always does, at the memory of Rhyme's sixteenth birthday.

"_Joshua!" She gasped, reaching out to touch his slightly longer hair. "You actually got older!"_

_It wasn't too difficult to do so, since Joshua only appeared young due to his weakened powers. Some altering, some experiments with the depths of his powers, and he actually looked a year older. He giggled at her, eyes glowing through their veil of ashen hair._

"_It's not that difficult to get older, dear."_

Well, now he was seventeen, a simple thought altering his physical, RG form. Each step in the sewer echoed loudly, bouncing off the walls, and the muted voices of Shibuya reached his ears as he emerged into the city. He had long since forgotten his own birthday…

Step. Step. Step. Still calm and measured, the Composer edited his direction.

He couldn't look now, with his powers, into the Music, due to his weakened state. For this, the Composer was secretly grateful. Because whenever he had been alone, sometimes even when he wasn't, he kept replaying the image and trying to hide the almost…distressed like feeling it caused him

He hid it well, because he was Joshua, simply put.

Step. Step. Step.

His fingers toyed with the cell phone in his pocket, and Joshua cast his gaze to those around him. In the current brooding mood he was in, people carefully dodged him, noticing his expression.

_Smart,_ he mused. _Because I can't promise a vending machine won't find its way onto their car if_-

"Josh."

Joshua paused, putting on a smile and turning around, flicking a strand of hair from his eyes. "Neku."

Neku approached him, his eyes as skeptical and dark as ever, the deep blue irises fixed on the Composer's own purple.

"I informed you I wasn't doing anything already." Joshua told him in a low whisper.

Without fail, every birthday, Neku would protect Rhyme by coming to find Joshua. He somehow knew wherever he was, and every time all he said was his name. The ashen haired teen noticed Neku didn't relax, he simply crossed his arms.

"You know what she and Beat are doing today."

"Of course I do."

The tension in the air between them quickly cleared the side streets of only the most desperate of shoppers. Joshua narrowed his eyes. "Neku, do you honestly-"

"Why not?" He interrupted, his tone rough. "You killed me. Twice. And that was to 'help' me. I wouldn't put it past you to kill her!"

When eyes cast their way, nervously, afraid, Joshua pulled his phone out and tapped several buttons. "Neku," he chided. "People are watching, and you can't keep your voice low."

"I know how close you get every time she celebrates a birthday." Neku continued, not put off at all.

Joshua knew about Neku. He was worriedly overprotective of his only friends, and in the thrum of his thoughts Joshua detected the deep down fear he would lose them.

"But I don't. I promised you I wouldn't kill her."

"I'm not screwing around here, Josh! I know what you say. You keep saying, 'not this time.' Not. This. Time. This _time_."

The Composer rolled his eyes, turning around and walking toward Rhyme's house again, saying nothing.

Wordlessly, Neku walked beside him.

It was true; every birthday was a close call for the young Bito…

The farther they walked, the more the tension eased just a little, and it wasn't until Joshua judged Neku wasn't going to explode into a fury, he told him quietly, "Neku, do you trust me?"

A pause, then, "I trust you…"

"But you don't forgive me. You don't have to. I promise I will not harm Rhyme."

Neku looked at him, his eyes faintly creased with worry, and then he sighed. "Okay Josh. Okay."

Joshua may not have his clairvoyance powers at the moment, but his mind continued to play the image, like a video on repeat, a scene that retreated and replayed over and over until his heart ached, even a heart that had long ago stopped beating, and forgotten the motion even.

Can a dead heart break…?

Step. Step. Step.

Sitting on the stairs, chin in hands, was Rhyme. She was talking to Beat, and Joshua recognized her hidden boredom, seen by how her foot tapped lightly on the asphalt. She lifted her head to look at the approaching boys, and she brightened considerably.

Raimu Bito, age seventeen, wasn't much different. Still the shortest of the group, still wearing boy's clothes, still wearing a black hat. However, her hair was longer, around her shoulders, but the young features of her face had barely changed with age. She smiled larger, leaping off the steps to race toward Joshua.

It was all he could do not to run back at her and wrap his arms around her in a hug. But he was Joshua, and since when did he run? Still, his steps were just a little faster.

Step step. Step step.

He decided to screw it over, catching her in a hug anyway and even twirling her for a moment, giggling at Beat's irritated sound.

Their relationship had led to several questions by their friends, but it was the combined efforts of Eri, and to Joshua's surprise, Shiki, whom had made their status as boyfriend and girlfriend _not_ something for Beat to try and hurt Joshua over every single time.

It had become a game to Joshua to continuously do something affectionate with Rhyme in order to cause Beat to growl like a dog almost.

Amusing, to say the least. His way of teasing Beat just like he teased Neku with his soft laughter.

"Joshua, hi!" She said cheerily, returning his brief kiss. She pulled back, her blue eyes flashing all of a sudden with guilt.

"Hello, Rhyme." He put his hand on his chin. "Oh, something the matter? Usually you're smiling the brightest out of all of us."

"Y-you know what today is?"

"Yes, but surely this is a matter for you to celebrate? Your seventeenth birthday?" Joshua heard the words from his vision instead of just seeing the situation now.

"_Today…is the day I-"_

"Yo, prissy boy! You're makin' Rhyme not smile on her birthday!" Beat stood up, eyes narrowed, stomping down the steps toward him.

Joshua just smiled back, ignoring him, and instead said, "Hello, Shiki, Eri."

Eri and Shiki were dashing toward them, Eri looking like a model as usual and Shiki tugging on a jacket behind her. She paused to give Neku an affectionate, one armed hug, since they rarely did more than that in public, and Eri gave Beat a kiss on the cheek, causing him to nervously kick at the ground.

"Happy birthday! We've got so much planned today," Eri began. "What with the shopping spree, and the park, and-"

"The theater, the party," Shiki continued.

"The food-"

"The drinks-"

"Stop." Neku commanded, groaning. "Dear God, are you two high?"

"High on excitement!" Eri squealed, bouncing in place. Beat mumbled something about calming down, earning a glare from his girlfriend.

"Let's go!" Rhyme said cheerily. She gave Joshua a loving look, the affection clear in her eyes, then said, "I guess we'll have to get in Beat's car."

Beat shrugged. "Yeah cuz it won't fit all of us, yo…"

Neku shrugged. "Good thing I parked my bike around here."

Shiki gaped at him, and Joshua giggled. "You walked over to talk to me?" He asked in a lowered tone.

Neku glared at him, and then continued, "I finally got enough yen to buy the motorcycle."

Shiki jumped up and down. "Can I ride with you, Neku?"

He didn't get a choice, since she dragged him off down the road with him mumbling about how he hadn't driven with two people on it yet.

Beat had found an old car and fixed it up very recently, and now the dark black car was the usual thing they rolled in. It had only been in working order and driven for a day; since a fear of cars had actually kept both Beat and Rhyme from getting in it.

"We died by a car, what do ya expect?" Beat had grumbled.

They waited until the roar of a motorcycle behind them meant Neku and Shiki were present, then Beat flipped on the radio and started driving, pulling away from the curb.

"Go at the speed limit!" Eri panicked, watching the gauge as it flickered between seventy and eighty. Joshua could tell she was wondering why, if he was afraid of cars, he was going so fast.

"No backseat drivers, yo!"

"I'm in the front seat! Are you trying to kill us?"

"Slow down." Rhyme whimpered, watching Beat zoom around cars to a cacophony of horn honking.

Beat finally did so, after realizing he was scaring Rhyme, and Joshua stage whispered, "He's trying to kill us."

Rhyme laughed weakly, and then Eri's phone rang.

"_Where have we met before? Just like that. I know-"_the ringtone began. Eri answered it quickly. "Shiki?" She screwed her face up as she tried to hear her friend over the roar of the motorcycle. "Neku says," she told Beat, closing the phone. "If you drive like that again he's going to run you off the road."

Beat snorted, but checked the speed gauge again. He flicked on a turning signal and pulled off into the movie theater.

Neku and Shiki parked beside them on a dark blue motorbike. Shiki took off a black helmet and laughed weakly. "It's kind of scary."

Her boyfriend just shrugged. "What movie are we seeing now?"

Joshua and the others argued for a while, but in the end they guiltily turned to Rhyme to see what she wanted to see. She told them anything, and that resulted in another argument before they settled on an action slash romance film.

Everyone blatantly refused to let Rhyme buy anything, and this resulted in another argument between Rhyme and the others.

Joshua didn't show it as he inserted a snide comment here and there, but he was secretly taking these friendly, bickering moments and locking them inside his memory.

As the day progressed, the Composer found himself, more and more, appreciating his friends, especially since today was that dreaded day. He giggled at Beat's poor, slow understanding of wordplay, smiled at Shiki's energy as she dragged Rhyme around looking for clothes, mocked Neku's taste in food, enjoyed Eri's sense in style as she handed him a perfect shirt from the rack, and loved everything that simply made up Rhyme that day.

These people he called his friends, despite what he was, little more than a dead phantom that walked Shibuya, had changed him for the better. These people that knew what he was and accepted it, sometimes even forgot about it, having the gall to tell him when he was wrong and not _afraid_ to tell him. He never realized how much he actually needed people like this until he had met them.

And he was grateful. But he could tell by the position of the sun in the sky as they left their last destination, the Ramen Don, that the moment was very near.

"Joshua?" Rhyme asked him quietly, stepping back with him as the friends walked in front, Beat complaining about why the hell they had decided to get so far from the car.

"Hmm?"

"It's bothering you." She ducked her head down. "Isn't it?"

"Well, Raimu, what do you expect?" His tone carried an icy tint that made her flinch, but she slipped her hand in his and squeezed it gently. He coiled his own fingers around hers, sighing.

"I'm sorry, Joshua. But it's not forever, I'll be back soon."

He didn't dignify that with a reply, just kissed her, and he could tell she was aware of the tension he was feeling, it made his whole body lock up.

"Joshua-"

"Hey, prissy boy! Do ya remember where I parked?"

Joshua sped up his steps and Rhyme was left behind for a moment before she jogged to keep up.

They successfully located the car and the motorcycle, and they headed back to the Bito family home. The music blared as Beat tapped his fingers to the tune, but apparently Eri had tired herself out, because she was leaning back with her eyes closed, but it was impossible to tell if she was napping or not.

Rhyme leaned against Joshua, and he had an arm around her shoulders as he frisked his fingers through her hair, feeling the soft locks between each finger.

Rhyme made a contented sound that reminded him of a cat, and he smiled down at her, because she was tired too.

"Say, Beat, what's tired the girls out so fast?"

Beat looked at him in the rearview mirror. "Eh, I don't know, yo. Maybe the mini golf?"

"The skating?"

"The laser tag?"

They tossed back and forth the things they did today before they reached the home. As they got out and into the Bito residence, Beat turned around and snatched up two bags from the floor, tossing one over his shoulder.

"Well, we're about to bounce then to catch our plane."

Rhyme smiled at everyone. "Thanks so much, this was the best birthday ever!"

Shiki hugged both of them, sniffling. "I'm going to miss you guys, write often, okay?"

"Of course Shiki." Rhyme replied.

Everyone made their good byes, but Joshua waited until they were done before saying his own. They all stepped back, and he walked toward Rhyme.

Step. Step. Step.

He took one hand gently, and then gave the others a look. "Can we be alone, just for a moment?"

Beat looked like he was going to argue, but when Rhyme agreed; Shiki and Eri took their boyfriends out of the room.

Once their footsteps had faded, Joshua looked down at Rhyme, still a little shorter than him, and sighed.

"Today…is the day I-"Rhyme began, but Joshua put his finger on her lips.

"I know, today is when you leave, isn't it, dear? Just like you wanted?"

"I'll be back, I promise. Soon." She murmured.

He hugged her, a surprising gesture from him, and she returned it.

"I'm thanking you, Raimu. Because you've made me a better person."

"You did that yourself. You've changed, and you've made Shibuya better because of it. This will always be my home, and I'll be back in a year tops, you hear me?" She smiled, and tears were going down her face. Joshua gently brushed them away, smiling at her.

"You didn't let me finish. You've made me a better person by simply being who you are. The heart opens to one that opens in return, does it not?"

When footsteps approached them, Joshua kissed her. It was a different kiss, not tense, but passionate and sad, because Joshua knew the vision would soon reach its climax.

"We've gotta go." Beat said just as they pulled apart.

Rhyme nodded, and the friends waved good bye as they prepared to leave. Beat handed Eri the key to his car.

"We can't really take it with us, yo. The program we're in is handlin' that."

"Where are you going?" She asked sadly, turning the silver key of the car they had worked on in her hands.

"Yo, we're heading to Europe! We're gonna learn and study there for a bit and then come back."

"We got accepted!" Rhyme said excitedly.

"I only did cuz Rhyme wouldn't go if I couldn't." Beat mumbled, but Rhyme told him that wasn't true, he had aced the test himself.

As they left the house, Shiki comforting Eri, Neku walked over to Joshua.

"You love her."

Joshua nodded mutely.

"She'll be back. If anything goes wrong Beat will protect her."

"I know, dear."

Neku grimaced but continued. "If you want to see her leave, you better go after her now."

Joshua said nothing, just vanished from their sight.

And ran.

~***~

The intercom was not saying something Joshua wasn't really aware of, nor did he care. He just ran through the crowds, _breaking a sweat,_ scanning the Music and searching through it for Rhyme's song. He located Beat's, and by virtue of that, found Rhyme's.

He halted, standing invisible beside her, as they prepared to leave.

She was crying, tears going down her face, and she smiled at Beat through them. Joshua reached out and touched her face, trailing his fingers through the tears he couldn't touch.

"Yo, you don't have to go…"

"I've always wanted to travel. It's my new dream. I just wished he could come with me."

"Hey, he's happy for you. You know he'd get all ticked on you for not goin' after what you want, aight?"

"That's true…Let's go."

When Beat and Rhyme left for their plane, Joshua felt something on his cheek.

He blinked, stunned, touching it. A single, glimmering white tear that shone like stars hung on his fingertip lightly before falling. When it hit the floor, it vanished in a small explosion of light.

He had cried. The first tear in years, so many years he couldn't recall.

A single, radiant tear.

~***~

There was a calendar in the Dead God's Pad.

There was one on his phone, but its owner preferred to rip it off, feeling the physical evidence that a day, a week, a month, had gone by.

It let him keep excellent track of the time, and now he knew exactly when it happened.

Three months after Rhyme left, Shiki and Eri successfully started their own business, with official endorsement from CAT. Joshua and Neku had been there.

Seven months after Rhyme left, Neku got accepted into an excellent college, (in Shibuya thank God), for computer graphic design.

Eleven months after Rhyme left, Joshua got a message from her earlier than usual, saying she and Beat were almost finished with their program.

Finally, nothing compared to ripping off the last paper on the calendar and crumpling it up, giggling because it was a year after.

~***~

There was a boy at the airport.

The stewardess didn't like him; he had strange eyes that burned into you, just _challenging_ you to ask him what he was doing there. She kept a good distance from him, and he just stared forward at the entrance to a certain airplane terminal.

She noticed that as soon as a young man and the teenage girl emerged, he stood up, his face clearing of the almost desperate impatience he had been feeling, replaced with a smirk.

The stewardess noticed the girl's blue eyes widen in pleased surprise, and then she saw her run, ("No running in the terminal."), she almost said, but changed her mind.

Why? Because she didn't want to stop this scene.

The girl ran into the boy's arms, smiling up at him, and the boy with the violet eyes, wrapped his arms around her. She saw his lips move, and just faintly heard:

"Welcome home, Rhyme."  
~***~

_**I wanted to show how I think having friends would change Joshua through this story.**_

_**Rhyme and Beat will leave to travel again, but maybe, just maybe, Joshua will be with her this time.**_

_**How? I'll leave you to imagine that. I personally see Neku in the Dead God's Pad; does that paint what I'm imagining for you? I didn't want to write that though, so imagine what you want for now.**_

_**Did you like it? This ends "Songs and Poetry", anonymous reviews are on, so everyone, please, leave a review!**_

_**Thanks for reading, every single reviewer, especially LT; I got into Joshyme from your stories.**_


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